Meeting You Made Me Question Myself
by GleeFilly
Summary: Rachel shut the door tightly and groaned, hopefully these neighbors wouldn't stick around long. She knew it was going to be a tiring wait for them to move, they had only been here a day and had already given her more problems than she's ever had with a neighbor before.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: So this story was a series of connected one-shots that I've turned into a separate story. For the most part it's a completed story, but I will definitely be adding to it!**

* * *

Rachel stared around the apartment lobby at the many boxes and pieces of furniture, unable to tell if someone was moving in or out. It wasn't unusual for this to happen, she was sure someone new moved in at least once a week.

It made for excellent reasoning to find the new tenant and bake them a muffin basket to welcome them to the building, everyone knew Rachel Berry was the neighbor to definitely become friends with. She was much too generous, albeit a tad bit crazy, but a good person all around.

She nosily peeked around at the boxes and furniture, her face scrunching in question at the animal printed dining chairs, _who even owned animal print furniture? _

Shaking her head she made her way toward the elevator, the groceries in her arms becoming much too heavy for her to continue her snooping.

She hummed softly to herself during the long ride up, she'd usually have a one woman concert during this time but, unfortunately for her, she wasn't alone on her trek to the eighteenth floor today.

A woman who looked like someone of Latin descent stood next to her with a box in her arms and another on the floor beside her, both labeled _'shit I'll probably never use but what the fuck ever.'_

_Classy. _

Rachel stared at her from the corner of her eyes in distaste, she had a feeling this woman was going to be her new across the hall neighbor. It was the only apartment on her floor that was empty, the man that had previously lived there moved out almost a month ago.

Rachel adjusted the groceries in her arms as the doors opened to her floor and quickly made her exit, usually she'd be all for helping but she had her own things to deal with.

Like the ice cream that was definitely on it's way to becoming a milkshake, or the child peeking under her door.

_Why is there a child peeking under my door?_

Rachel frowned as she studied the child, his face was pressed right against the door as he tried to look under it.

He was definitely new, and the open apartment door across from her own told her exactly where he had come from.

Truthfully the hallway was a mess, there were boxes all over the place which made it hard to maneuver her way to her door.

The child laying in front of it didn't help either.

"Hi, is there something I can help you with?" She asked politely as she came to a stop in front of her apartment and looked down at the boy.

"I dropped Batman's cage and he ran under here and won't come back..I hope no one has a cat in there." He answered, his face still turned toward the door.

Rachel's eyes widened, "_Please_ tell me Batman is a dog..or a bunny, I would be okay with a bunny."

The boy sighed, "Batman is a rat."

"_What?!_" Rachel asked, horrified at the thought of a rat loose in her apartment.

"Is this your house? Can you get him for me? He's all black with a white patch on his face!"

Rachel shook her head quickly, "What? Are you _crazy_? No way!"

"Can I get him then? Mom says if he stays out of his cage too long he might want to join the rest of his friends in the sewers so I gotta keep him in his cage a lot! He's been in there for a long time, what if he's gone?" The boy asked as he sat, a well rehearsed pout on his face.

"Fine, I'll unlock the door but you better find it or else I'm calling the exterminator." Rachel said as she unlocked the door, backing up from it immediately. "Where's your mother?"

He shrugged as he pushed the door open, "Buildin' stuff with Puck."

Rachel stared at him in confusion, "Is that slang?"

He shrugged as he walked into the apartment, "You got a lot stuff, he's probably hiding somewhere."

Rachel tapped her foot impatiently from the hall, "Well hurry up and find him, put smoke in the sky or something."

"It's a bat signal, and mom wouldn't let me get him one." He said in annoyance as he continued to walk around the apartment, "Hey what's this thing? Does it spin? It looks like my soccer trophy."

Rachel gasped, "Do _not_ touch my Tony award! Look for your vermin."

She noticed the woman from the elevator finally making her way down the hall, sliding boxes along with her as she did so.

"Excuse me, I'm assuming it's you moving in across from me and I'm also assuming it's your child that has let his _disgusting_ rat loose in my apartment, which might I even ask why you would buy your child a rat as a pet? I'm all for being neighborly but I will not tolerate a rat loose in my—"

The woman ignored her and stuck her head into the newly occupied apartment, "Max already pissed off a neighbor!"

Rachel stared in confusion in front of her as a man with a mohawk stepped out of the apartment, a smirk playing on his lips.

"Hey, hot stuff. You live across the hall?"

Rachel huffed, "Yes and your son has let his rodent loose in my apartment! I can't even go in there to put my groceries away, which I'm sure my ice cream has melted all over my vegetables and fruits."

"You were smokin' 'till you opened your mouth, princess." He said as he stacked boxes on top of each other and carried them inside, ignoring her obvious displeasure about the pet being in her apartment.

Rachel stomped her foot, "What kind of parents are you? _First_ you let him have a rat, which is _completely_ disgusting, _then_ you allow him to let the thing go with no care where it ends up and now you don't even care that I'm complaining?"

"Is there a problem out here?" Another woman asked, a perfectly shaped eyebrow raised in question.

Rachel stared at her in disbelief, "_Yes_ there's a problem! There's a rat loose in my apartment and a child crawling around trying to find it, completely intruding my personal space, whose parents don't even care!"

The woman sighed, "Look I'm really sorry, I told him to leave the cage for me to grab but you know how kids are. The thing is harmless, I promise it's safe to go inside."

"I am not going in there until it's out." Rachel said stubbornly.

"He won't come out until he's hungry, which probably won't be until later on unless he's eating your furniture as we speak." She said with an eye roll as she peeked her head inside Rachel's apartment, "Max, you know he's not going to come out right now. Leave the lady's apartment until later, okay?"

"What if Batman joins his sewer friends, mom? I _really_ like him." Max whined as he slowly walked toward the door, making sure to keep an eye out for the animal.

"We'll get you a new one if you can't find him, okay? I'm sure Puck won't mind." She said as she ruffled the child's hair and guided him toward their door.

"Wait, what am I supposed to do? There's a rat loose in my apartment!" Rachel shrieked with wide eyes as she watched the family walk into their apartment.

"You really don't have to worry, he won't come out for a while. We'll come back in a few hours and try again." She shrugged, "I'm Santana by the way, and this is Max, we're your new neighbors. The two you were yelling at before are just friends, Puck and Dani, you'll be seeing them around here a lot though."

"I'm—"

"Rachel Berry, I know. The super told me you were extremely friendly." Santana said.

Rachel blushed, "I'm sorry, I just..I really don't like rodents."

"It's cool, see you later." Santana smiled as she walked into her apartment and shut the door.

"Mom? Why didn't we rustle his food bag like we usually do when he hides?" Max asked with a frown.

"We would have if she was nicer about it. Do onto others and all that jazz, kid." Santana shrugged as she went back to putting together her furniture.

She'd let the woman sweat it out a bit, she deserved it after the way she spoke to Puck and Dani.

Who talked to strangers the way she did anyway?

_High maintenance divas. _

* * *

Rachel looked around her apartment warily, she _really_ didn't like rats.

In fact she had a downright phobia of them ever since her dorm in college was infested and she woke up to one chewing on her hair and her roommate snapping pictures instead of helping.

She knew pet rats were probably harmless, but it was still a rat therefore it was still gross.

She carefully walked into the kitchen area of the apartment and set her groceries down on the counter as she put the items away, making sure to keep an open eye for any unwanted creatures.

She left a few of the berries she had bought and the yogurt out so she could make a smoothie, having been craving one all day with no time to buy one from anywhere.

She pulled her blender down from the top of the fridge and began cutting up her fruits and tossing them in, singing quietly to herself as she did so until she was full on singing.

If she wasn't so distracted she may have heard the faint patter of tiny feet on the counter, or the quiet squeaks as the animal got closer and closer to her and her fruit.

She may have even been able to move away before he nudged her hand with his nose, his whiskers tickling her wrist in the process.

She stopped singing immediately at the sensation, freezing as the rodent crawled around her hand to munch on the strawberries she was currently chopping.

She stared at it with wide eyes before letting out an ear piercing shriek and jumping up onto the counter behind her, her eyes never leaving the fruit eating intruder.

"_Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god._" She chanted, too terrified to move.

"God what am I going to do? I can't leave it there." She cried to herself as she continued to stare at the tiny creature.

She climbed down from the counter slowly making sure not to make any noise so she didn't spook it and grabbed her blender, sending a silent praise that it was close to the edge.

She gripped it with both hands and walked closer to the counter, flipping it upside down to trap the rat and dropping all of the fruit and yogurt all over it in the process.

She grinned victoriously as she trapped it before frowning again, still unsure of what to do next.

She grabbed the phone book she usually used as a stepping stool and placed it on top of the upside down blender to make sure the rat couldn't escape before running to her door and opening it.

"Take it out of my apartment right now!" Rachel said loud enough so her new neighbor would be able to hear.

She stood anxiously outside of the kitchen as she waited for someone to show up, making sure she kept an eye on the tiny intruder.

Max came running into the apartment quickly, followed by a smirking Santana.

"Holy yogurt and fruits, Batman!" He exclaimed as he roughly knocked the blender over to collect his pet.

"Everything okay?" Santana asked as she stood by the door.

"I'm okay, don't worry about me." Rachel said with a thankful smile.

Santana gave her a funny look, "I was talking to Max. You're not the one covered in fruit and yogurt."

Rachel frowned, "Oh, of course. Um, I'm sorry..I can pay for his grooming bill..or whatever it is you do to rats to clean them."

"We just put him in the sink, though it's kind of an annoying process so you can do it." Santana teased, knowing the woman would flat out refuse.

Rachel shook her head quickly, "No thank you."

Santana laughed, "Chill out, tiny, I was kidding. Come on, Max, let's leave Miss. Rachel alone now, I think we've done enough for today."

"Can I have these strawberries, Miss. Rachel?" Max asked as he stuffed the rat into the hood on his sweatshirt.

Rachel grimaced, "The rat was..You know what? Knock yourself out."

"Thanks! See you tomorrow, Miss. Rachel!" He said, flashing her a toothy grin as he ran out of the apartment.

"See you around, tiny." Santana said as she followed the child out, the cocky smirk back on her face.

Rachel shut the door tightly and groaned, hopefully these neighbors wouldn't stick around long. She knew it was going to be a tiring wait for them to move, they had only been here a day and had given her more problems than she's ever had with a neighbor before.

Rachel shuddered as she thought about the rat that walked all over her counter and apartment...tomorrow was definitely the day to do a full clean of the space.

She just hoped she had no interruptions in the process.

A large crash and _'oops'_ from the hallway and she knew her living there was never going to be peaceful again.

* * *

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	2. Chapter 2

Rachel let out a happy sigh as she sunk further into the tub, she had had an extremely long week and getting this time to herself was a blessing.

She was between shows at the moment but that didn't mean she could slack off. She had an extremely vigorous workout schedule followed by private dance classes to keep up and of course vocal classes to keep her talent sharp. Not being in a show was almost as much work as _being_ in a show.

Her new neighbors weren't very considerate either, there was always constant noise traveling into her apartment at all hours of the day and most of the night.

Not to mention Santana always leaving the apartment randomly and coming home at weird hours rather loudly. She wasn't sure how old Max was, but she _was_ sure he was definitely too young to be left home alone, assuming no one else lived there.

She just didn't understand how the woman was able to afford living across from her, it didn't make sense.

Rachel carefully unlocked her phone and opened her google search app with a curious expression on her face.

_How much money does a stripper make a month?_

Rachel frowned at the results, there were way too many different answers. _Santana is definitely attractive so she must make a lot which is probably how she affords to live here..especially on the top floor._

She placed her phone back on the toilet seat and sunk back into the water, breathing in the relaxing lavender scent that filled the room. Nothing could ruin the sense of serenity she felt at this moment.

Not even the obnoxious banging on her door and the shouts traveling under it.

She let it go on for a few minutes before sighing and getting out of the tub, a fluffy robe tied tightly around her as she shuffled to the front door.

_"Miss. Rachel?"_

Rachel sighed again as she unlocked her door, she couldn't leave the kid out there alone. She may have had a strong dislike for the woman across the hall but she wouldn't punish the kid for it.

"What can I do for you, Max?" She asked kindly as she opened the door, noticing the worried expression on the young boy's face.

"Mom had to go to work and usually Puck comes over but he didn't." He pouted.

"Okay..." She said, unsure of why it resulted in him knocking on her door.

"You're the back up plan!" Max said with a grin, his two front teeth missing.

Rachel's eyes widened, "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Mom says if Puck doesn't show up I'm supposed to come over here until she comes to get me or someone else does." He said as he walked into the apartment and flopped on the couch.

"Wait, but.._what?_ I was never consulted about this." Rachel said, her hands placed firmly on her hips. "I don't know the first thing about taking care of a child."

"Well I'm eight so I mostly take care of myself. Hey can I bring Batman over? I don't wanna leave him alone." He asked as he got up and made his way to the door.

"If you take care of yourself why can't you be home alone? And no you can't bring that disgusting animal into my apartment." Rachel said, stepping in front of the door with a stern expression.

"Staying home alone is illegal, Miss. Rachel. Are you _sure_ I can't bring Batman in here?" He asked again, using his best pout.

Rachel locked the door and made her way toward her room nervously, "I'm quite positive, buddy. Why don't you stay here while I go get dressed, okay? Have you had dinner?"

"Yeah, we had pizza for dinner!" He said, jumping onto the couch excitedly.

"How healthy." Rachel said in distaste, "Don't jump on the furniture, this isn't a crazy house." She called out as she quickly ran into her room and shut the door.

She didn't know the first thing about taking care of a kid, she was an only child and none of her friends had kids...at least none that she spent any time with. She wasn't the mothering type, growing up with two dads and no mom had done that to her. She had no desire to be a parent, she knew she'd be just awful at it.

She couldn't understand how Santana could tell her child to come here without even asking her about it first. If Santana had asked she obviously couldn't have said no so she'd be in the same situation, but at least she would have had time to prepare herself and her apartment for a child to be in.

_"Miss. Rachel? Do you have anymore strawberries?"_

Rachel sighed as she heard him moving around, the fridge opening soon after and the sounds of things falling followed by a quiet oops.

Oops seemed to be the kid's most said phrase, she heard it at least once a day travel through the hall and under her door. Having it said in her own apartment made her a little nervous.

_"Miss. Rachel? I accidentally spilled your weird play dough stuff."_

Rachel groaned, she knew he meant her tofu and she had just bought that. "Okay, don't touch anything else! I'll be out in a minute."

* * *

Rachel paced nervously, she really had no clue what to do. She grabbed her phone and quickly called her best friend, hoping he'd give her some advice.

_"Miss. Rachel Berry, what have I done to receive the gift of this phone call so late in the evening? I was sure you'd be soaking in the tub for hours followed by a quiet Barbra evening."_

"Kurt, I'm in trouble." Rachel whispered into the phone.

_"Oh no, what have you done this time? Did you finally murder those new neighbors of yours? I would have done that the day after they moved in, diva."_

Rachel sighed in exasperation, "No, I didn't murder them! It's worse. You know how I told you the woman leaves all the time? Well she did it again."

_"I really want to meet this Santana, she sounds like an interesting woman, you know with her secretive profession and all that."_

"Kurt, please focus for a second. So she left, and then half an hour later there's a banging on my door. I tried to ignore it, I really did but then he started screaming my name and as much as I dislike them, I really do have a soft spot for him."

_"For..who? You've lost me, Rachel."_

"The kid! The one that cracked my blender and let his rat loose in here! He barges into my apartment claiming he has to be here because no one showed up to watch him and Santana said if that ever happens he has to come here. Here, Kurt! She didn't even ask! What if I hurt kids or-or accidentally kill him or something?"

Rachel rolled her eyes at Kurt's excessive laughter flooding her ears, she knew he wouldn't be any help at all.

"This isn't funny, Kurt! I need help, what do I even do?" She whined.

_"Where is he right now?"_

Rachel quietly peeked her head out of her door, "I don't know, spilling the contents of my fridge all over the floor. He's destructive, Kurt, you know I hate mess and things being unorganized."

_"You'll be fine, make him a fruit salad, talk to him and watch TV with him until the probable stripper comes to get him, okay? Call me when he's gone and tell me how it went. I have to go, Project Runway is back. Bye bye, diva!"_

Rachel groaned and shoved her phone in her hoodie pocket as she walked into the kitchen, no sign of Max anywhere.

"Max?" She called out warily as she cleaned up the spilled food and took out various fruits from the fridge.

"Boo!"

Rachel jumped and dropped the fruits all over the floor as the child popped out from the cupboard next to the stove. She should have known he was in there, all of the pots and pans she usually kept in there were scattered around the floor.

"What are you doing? Get out of there and put the pots and pans back how you found them." Rachel ordered as she picked up the dropped fruits.

"I pranked you! Puck says pranks are the best way to make friends." Max said as he shoved the pans into the cupboard.

Rachel cringed as she watched him, knowing she'd have to reorganize it after he left. "Puck is a liar, you shouldn't listen to someone whose name is Puck."

"He says I shouldn't listen to goodie two shoes like my neighbor, but you're the only neighbor I know so I don't know who he meant." He said as he struggled to close the cupboard.

Rachel glared at the boy, "You can tell Puck—"

"Miss. Rachel, do you have any games?" Max cut her of as he wandered out of the kitchen.

"Um..I have Broadway trivia."

Max sighed, "Next time we do this we're gonna be at my house."

"Next time? Don't get ahead of yourself, buddy." Rachel laughed nervously as she cut the fruit.

"I'm bored. Got any movies?" He asked as he crawled around her living room.

"Yes, they're all on the shelf beside the television. Pick one!" Rachel called out as she eyed him curiously. She really had never babysat anyone before, not even when she was a teenager. Watching kids was just something she never had an interest in, nor was having kids. She was a single, thirty-three year old woman and she wasn't complaining. It gave her more time to focus on her career without the added trouble of a kid or significant other weighing her down.

She had dated men and women, neither more appealing than the other. They all had wanted the same thing; family, kids, a dog and a house in the suburbs. And that was just something Rachel wasn't interested in, she didn't want a dog or a house, she loved her high rise apartment and the bustling city noise. If that meant she was going to be single forever then it was just fine with her, she wouldn't change her dreams to fit someone else's.

"Do you have any regular movies?" Max called out, breaking her away from her thoughts.

"Like what? What's wrong with those movies?" Rachel sighed.

"They all look dumb, do you have The Avengers?"

"No..what is that?" Rachel asked as she walked into the living room with the bowl of fruits. "Hey, do you have any allergies?"

Max shrugged as he reached for a grape, "Just peaches."

Rachel's eyes widened and smacked the grape out of his hand, "Don't eat anything in here! There's peaches."

"It's fine, I'll eat around them." He said, popping a grape into his mouth and laying on the couch next to Rachel, his feet almost in her lap.

"Are you sure that's not dangerous? I don't know what to do if you have a reaction." Rachel said nervously.

"I'll be fine. Can we watch tv?" He asked as he reached for another grape.

"Sure, what do you wanna watch?" Rachel asked as she turned the tv on and began flipping trough the channels.

"Spongebob!"

Rachel stared at the tv in confusion as the cartoon played, _how did kids watch this stuff? _

She was thankful he wasn't younger and she was forced to watch the baby shows her friends have talked about, though Spongebob was proving to be just as bad.

_Lord, please save me. _

* * *

Rachel was pulled out of her sleep by urgent knocking on her door, she wiped her eyes sleepily and got up carefully to make sure she didn't disturb the sleeping child.

She opened the door with a yawn, already knowing who it would be on the other side. She may be sleepy, but she definitely had a lecture saved for the woman on the other side.

"Well well, if it isn't my neighbor Sant—is that _blood_ on your shirt? What the hell, what do you do?" Rachel asked in fear.

"Wouldn't you like to know. Where's Max? He okay?" Santana asked quietly, not wanting to cause noise for the other neighbors on their floor.

"He's fine, there was a tiny scare with some peaches but he's fine. I really wish you would have asked me about all of this, I don't know the first thing about taking care of a child, let alone one I know absolutely nothing about. I mean, I almost fed him peaches for goodness sake!" Rachel whisper yelled, holding the door open for Santana to step inside.

"It isn't the end of the world if he eats a peach, it would be good for him." Santana said with an eye roll as she leaned against the now closed door.

"What?! You leave him alone and think it'd be good for him to eat something he's allergic to?" Rachel asked in shock.

Santana chuckled, "He's not allergic to peaches, he just doesn't like them. Did he tell you he was allergic?"

"This is exactly why you should have told me about all of this before he just showed up at my doorstep!" Rachel lectured.

"I didn't think it would ever happen, Puck usually comes through for me but he got caught up tonight and Dani was busy." Santana frowned.

"What if I wasn't home? I don't know if you know this but I'm on Broadway, Santana! If I was currently in a show I wouldn't have been home, then what?" Rachel asked.

"I don't know, alright? I'd call someone else, or get the super to check on him. Don't lecture me about my parenting when you don't even have a kid, tiny." Santana said angrily.

"I'm sorry, Santana, I am but I just think you need to re-evaluate your life choices here. I'm..not sure I want to know what your job is, but it looks like it's a bad one."

Santana smirked, "Do you think I'm a hit woman or something? How do you know this isn't my blood?"

"Look I really don't want to know, okay? I don't want to be a target because I know too much." Rachel whispered. "Just..admit you were wrong by telling him to come here without asking me."

"It probably wasn't the best idea." Santana admitted, "But I knew you wouldn't turn him away, plus you're the only one I've met so far and you seemed trustworthy enough."

"There's a very nice lady that lives on the tenth floor, her name is Mrs. Lundy and she babysits a bunch of kids in the building...you should talk to her." Rachel offered with a smile.

"Thanks, tiny, I'll keep that in mind. I guess I'll get him out of your way now and let you get to bed." Santana said as she walked over to the couch. "He behaved himself, right?"

"Other than spilling the contents of my fridge and unorganizing my pots and pans? He was an angel." Rachel said as she watched the woman carefully lift her son without waking him.

"I'm sorry, I can replace whatever he ruined." Santana said.

Rachel shook her head, "It's okay, I guess we're even now since I ruined your rat."

Santana laughed quietly, "Okay, neighbor. See you around."

"Mom? Can Miss. Rachel watch me all the time?" Max asked sleepily as they walked through the door.

Santana smirked in Rachel's direction, "I'm sure she'd love that, kid."

Rachel groaned as she closed her door, she really needed to find another show.

She also needed to find a new place to live, she had a bad feeling about Santana's job and she didn't want to be questioned if the time ever came.

She could already see it happening, the cops would show up and not believe her when she told them she didn't know anything about the woman's illegal activities.

Rachel locked her door and shook her head as she made her way to her room and collapsed in bed, I_'m going insane. Between Spongebob and taking care of a kid I've definitely lost my mind. _

* * *

She awoke bright and early and decided to go for a jog through the park, it had been a while and she wasn't feeling a gym workout today. The weather was nice and the park was calling her name, she dressed quickly and made her way out, freezing in her tracks as she spotted a group of police officers in the hall.

She walked back into her apartment and shut the door, opting to look out through the peephole instead of being in the hall.

She knew this was going to happen, it was only a matter of time before the figured out she saw Santana last night with blood covered clothes and assumed she was an accomplice to it all.

She watched the men talk to Santana for a while, the woman rolling her eyes and shrugging every so often.

_"..done without you."_

_"..amazing person, Lopez."_

_"..parents.."_

Rachel backed away from the door, she didn't want to hear anymore of the muffled talk, she knew she was going down.

She turned on the television and flipped to the news to see if her suspicions were correct, she wanted to prepare for any questioning she may have to go through.

_"...And in other news, Chief of Police Santana Lopez is being honored later today for her act of bravery in last night's home invasion where she risked her own life and saved not only her officers but the family of five along with them."_

Rachel stared at the television is shock as the news went on, not believing a word she had just heard.

No way was the chief of police her rude neighbor. There just wasn't a way it was possible, her neighbor was a stripper or some other provocative worker.

She rewinded the news and watched the short segment again, watching as they showed clips and pictures of Santana, her neighbor Santana, saving people. She honestly couldn't believe it, it was almost as if she was in some sort of weird dream.

She shut the tv off and rubbed her face, her jog would definitely help her clear her mind.

Just as she opened her door she caught Santana about to knock, both startled.

"Oh, are you going out?" Santana asked, her hair neatly pulled tightly in a low ponytail.

"Um, I was going to go for a jog." Rachel said as she took in the woman's pulled together look.

"I was wondering if you could watch Max for a bit, I have this thing.."

"Sure, _Commissioner Lopez_." Rachel said with a knowing smile.

"Damn, I wanted you to think I was a criminal for a little bit longer. Imagine the shit I could have gotten you to do for me." Santana teased.

Rachel smacked the woman, "That is awful, I can't believe you let me go on thinking you were something totally different! I had a theory you were a stripper!"

"I used to be." Santana winked, "I'll bring Max around later, thanks, tiny!"

Rachel stared as the woman walked back into her own apartment, _she was probably joking.._

She closed her door and made her way to the elevator, the thought of Santana slowly stripping off her uniform and crawling toward her engraved into her mind.

_This is bad...really really bad. _

* * *

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	3. Chapter 3

"Got any threes?"

"How are you doing this? You have got to be cheating somehow." Rachel whined as she handed over her pair of threes.

Max rolled his eyes, "You're just a sore loser."

"I am not." She huffed.

"Are too. Got any aces?"

"You have got to be kidding me!"

Max smirked as he collected the cards, "Wanna play something else? Blackjack? Poker? Crazy eights?"

"You shouldn't even know the first two." Rachel playfully lectured with a grin.

Truthfully watching him had become much easier than that first time, he was still destructive and said oops way too much, but things went much smoother now.

She had been watching him almost every day for the last month and they definitely were forming a bond, he had even dropped the _Miss_ and stuck with just Rachel now. Kids were still something she definitely didn't want, but hanging out with this one wasn't so bad.

Especially because Santana had been the main focus of her dreams since the woman had made that comment about being a stripper. She just couldn't get the image out of her mind, it was almost as if it was permanently engraved in her brain.

The fantasy always started the same, Santana coming to pick up Max even though he wasn't there, her slowly strutting over and forcing Rachel to sit and watch as she stripped off her clothes and crawled toward her with that sexy smirk.

She couldn't even look Santana in the eye anymore without becoming an embarrassing, blushing mess. Santana more than likely knew something was up, always giving her funny looks before walking back toward her apartment with her son in tow.

"When do you think mom's coming back? She said she wouldn't be long and I really wanted to go to the zoo."

"I'm not sure, buddy. I'm sure it'll be soon." She assured as she shuffled the cards and dealt them.

"Rachel?" Max asked slowly with a cheeky grin.

Rachel shook her head quickly, "No way, I just got the hang of taking care of you indoors there's no way I'm ready for outside. Especially in Central Park, just wait for your mom."

"Buuut, Rachel, I'm bored of always being inside. It sucks." He whined.

Rachel crossed her arms defensively, "It does not suck, you are getting so much culture by just being in here!"

"I don't think I am." Max challenged with a frown. "You're just scared you can't do it."

Rachel narrowed her eyes, "Rachel Berry isn't scared of anything! Let's go."

Max grinned and jumped off the chair, "Awesome! Can we bring snacks to feed the animals?"

"I think that's illegal. I don't want to worry about getting arrested on top of worrying about losing you or something." Rachel frowned.

"I'm not a baby." He whined.

Rachel raised her eyebrows, "You're whining like a baby."

"Yeah well you're mean." He grumbled.

"I'm taking you out, I think I am pretty nice." Rachel said as she slipped on her flats and guided the boy into the hall as she closed and locked her door.

* * *

"What animal are you excited for?" Rachel asked as they waited for the elevator.

"Penguins! They're the best." He said. "What do you wanna see?"

Rachel hummed, "Probably the red pandas, they're just adorable."

"What's adorable? Me?" Santana asked as she stepped out of the elevator and saw her son and neighbor.

Rachel blushed, "Red pandas...not that you're not adorable too, I just-_ugh_, never mind."

Santana laughed, "Alright, tiny."

"Rachel was gonna take me to the zoo!" Max said excitedly.

"She was?" Santana asked with a raised eyebrow, "She must be feeling confident in her child watching skills today then."

Rachel's blush deepened, "I just figured staying inside all the time was boring and he really wanted to go so.."

"It's alright, Rachel. It's not like you were going to kidnap him, I know you'd never last." Santana joked.

"Are we going or what?" Max asked impatiently.

Santana rolled her eyes, "Just let me change, kid, the zoo isn't going anywhere."

Rachel smiled and patted the boy's head, "Well, I'm glad we got to spend some more time together, Maxwell."

"Where are you going?" He asked with a frown. "We're going to the zoo, Rachel!"

"I-your mom is taking you." Rachel said in confusion.

"You're more than welcome to come, tiny. I know you were super pumped about those red pandas." Santana teased.

Rachel blushed again, "Oh, I couldn't impose like that."

Santana shook her head, "Come on, I'm sure you have nothing else to do."

"Pleeeease, Rachel?" Max begged.

"If you're sure I'm not imposing..."

"I'm the one imposing, don't sweat it." Santana said with a wave of her hand, "I'm going to change real quick and then we can go."

Rachel watched as the woman quickly made her way into her apartment, she honestly had no idea how she was going to last the rest of the day being around Santana. She was barely able to talk to her for five minutes when the woman would pick up her son.

She smiled nervously as Santana made her way back down the hall, she was wearing a pair of jeans and an NYPD hoodie and still managed to look downright sexy.

"Let's go to the zoo, tiny ones." Santana grinned as she stepped into the waiting elevator.

Rachel internally sighed, this was going to be trouble, she just knew it.

* * *

"Put your money away, I'm going to show you what rolling with the commissioner gets you in this city." Santana smirked.

Rachel raised her eyebrows in amusement as Santana used her rank to get them in free of charge, not that it was even necessary because it wasn't expensive in the least.

"And that's how it's done, tiny."

Rachel laughed, "Santana, I think you're forgetting—"

"Oh my god, Rachel Berry?!"

Rachel smiled brightly at the teens quickly walking toward her, "Hello!"

"This is literally the best day ever. Do you think you could.."

Rachel nodded as she pulled a black sharpie out of her bag, "Sure, where?"

The teen excitedly handed over her phone, "Just right on it..please?"

"I don't want your parents mad at me.." Rachel said.

"No, they won't be!" The teen assured quickly.

Rachel laughed as she signed it, "There you go, enjoy your day, girls!"

"Thank you so much, Rachel!"

Santana stared at her with an amused smirk, "Does that happen often?"

Rachel shrugged, "Guess you'll have to go out with me to see." Her eyes widened quickly, "I mean, like, out in public..as in a hangout or something."

Santana laughed, "Are you trying to seduce me, tiny? Cause all you gotta do is ask, I'd probably say yes."

Rachel blushed, "Shut up, you know what I meant."

"Penguins, mom! Let's get a move on it, ladies!" Max yelled as he tapped his foot impatiently.

Santana rolled her eyes, "When did you get so bossy? You've been hanging out with Rachel too much."

"I am not bossy! Take it back." Rachel huffed.

"Is that an order?" Santana asked in amusement.

Rachel crossed her arms tightly as she walked beside the boy toward the penguins, "Yes it is! I'm _not_ bossy."

"Hate to break it to you but you are being bossy right now, tiny." Santana laughed.

"Yeah well you're mean." Rachel said, using the exact words the woman's son had used on her earlier. "Why do you call me tiny all the time, you're not even that much bigger than me."

"It's the first thing that came to mind when we met and I like it, would you rather me call you Berry?" Santana asked.

Rachel bit her lip, tiny was a cute nickname it just made her swoon over the woman even more. "No, tiny is fine I guess."

"Good cause you didn't really have a choice." Santana said as she ran up ahead and scooped the child up in the process.

Rachel rolled her eyes, the more she spent with Santana the more she realized the woman was nothing like the fantasy she had made up in her head-which made it that much easier to be around her.

"Come on, Rachel!" Max called out in an excited screech as Santana ran with him over her shoulder.

Rachel skipped along to catch up with the Lopez family happily, she was finding this day to be increasingly easier.

* * *

_I totally take it back, this is by far the hardest day ever. _

Santana, surprisingly enough, was actually a part time goof ball and full time sweetheart which put Rachel right back at square one with her attraction to the commissioner.

The woman was constantly checking to make sure she was having a good time, had made sure her food actually was vegan (while once again abusing her rank in the city) and somehow always ended up with her hand on the small of her back..which Rachel hadn't minded at all.

It was nice to be cared after for once, Kurt never showed that much compassion toward her when they hung out, nor did he ever ask if her meal was actually vegan. She wished she had more friends like Santana, despite her crudeness she was a great person.

She was also a great parent, she wasn't stern but she wasn't a pushover either. She was never too serious with the boy, the two often joking and playing around—always making sure to include her in their games and jokes.

Staring at the Latina clutching the sleeping child to her chest on the subway made her realize maybe it was more than the woman's physical appearance that made her blush.

It was her entire personality—nicknames, crudeness and crassness included because despite those less than ideal characteristics that could be refined, she was possibly the best person Rachel had ever met.

* * *

"Sorry we had to cut the day short, he's always a zombie whenever he spends time with you." Santana said as they rode the elevator to their floor.

"It's okay, I was getting quite tired myself." Rachel said quietly, trying to avoid waking up Max.

Santana rolled her eyes, "He sleeps like a rock, you don't have to whisper. I'm going to throw him into bed and he won't even wake up."

Rachel laughed, "Does that come from you or his dad?"

Rachel frowned at the cold expression on the woman's face, "I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have—"

"No, it's fine. I just don't like talking about that bastard." Santana said, her expression the same.

"I shouldn't have asked, I just..we don't know much about each other, huh?" Rachel asked, her frown deepening.

"Do you wanna come in for dinner or a drink or something to change that?" Santana asked, flashing Rachel a genuine smile.

"I'd love that." Rachel said, "I just have to call my agent back."

"New show?" Santana asked as she unlocked her door.

"Hopefully." Rachel said excitedly, "I wish I could tell you what it was but I am not supposed to say."

Santana rolled her eyes, "I'm not supposed to tell people things about my job either but I do it all the time."

"I'll tell you once I know more, I'm not even sure I'm going to take it or not." Rachel said.

"Well I'm sure whatever it is, you'll be great." Santana paused with a smirk, "Not as great as you were in West Side Story, and maybe not as great as you were in Rent..but I'm sure you'll be great."

Rachel stared, dumbfounded, as Santana disappeared into her apartment. Never in a million years had she thought Santana had actually known, or seen, anything she was in.

Rachel opened the woman's apartment quickly, forgetting about her phone call for the moment. "You've seen my shows?"

Santana chuckled as she walked back into the main part of the apartment, "I knew you were going to say something. What happened to your phone call?"

"I decided it could wait, why didn't you tell me you've seen my shows?!" Rachel asked with her hands on her hips. "I didn't even know you were into Broadway!"

"The two shows you were in happened to be my ultimate favorites." Santana shrugged. "I may have played Anita in my senior year and I was basically Mimi when I moved to the city. In fact, I'm positive I still remember the dance."

"Mimi's dance?" Rachel whispered, her thoughts going wild with stripper Santana images. "W-why do you know that dance?"

"I told you I was a stripper." Santana rolled her eyes, "I used her dance as inspiration, it was a real crowd pleaser."

"You were serious? I thought it was a joke." Rachel said quietly, her thoughts still racing.

"I mean I'm not proud of it but it happened so whatever. I'm just glad I got out and ended up where I am." Santana shrugged.

"That's..that's really great, Santana. I'm glad you made something of yourself, you're much more than a stripper." Rachel smiled.

"Fuck yeah I am." Santana nodded, "So, what about you?"

"Oh I was never a stripper. Singing waitress was the lowest I went." Rachel frowned.

"That's totally the same as a stripper." Santana joked. "Maybe you could give me a private performance."

"Uh, what?" Rachel asked, her mouth going dry at the dirty thoughts racing through her head.

"Singing, tiny. You have a killer voice, from what I've heard." Santana said.

Rachel blushed at the compliment, "I will if you will."

Santana stared at her funnily, "You want me to sing for you?"

Rachel's heart races quickly, _thank god she misunderstood y stupid blabber mouth.._

"Uh, yeah. You said you played Anita, right?"

Santana laughed, "I haven't sang in years, tiny. Ain't gonna happen."

"Oh well, I tried." Rachel lied with a shrug. "So um—"

"What do you want for dinner, you psycho?" Santana asked, the laughter still lacing her voice.

"There's this really great Chinese place I order from all the time.." Rachel grinned slowly, "maybe I could show you what rolling with a Broadway star will get you."

"Alright, go nuts." Santana said as she handed Rachel the cordless phone, their fingers brushing lightly.

Rachel bit her lip as the tingles from the touch ran all over her body, it was like nothing she had ever felt before. The lightest touch from the woman had awoken every single nerve in her body, had made every single inch of her skin warm and had made her pupils dilate.

Rachel gripped the woman's fingers tightly as she stared at her, her breathing becoming heavier as she became more nervous.

"What are you—"

Rachel pressed their lips together quickly, putting every saved up feeling from the last month into the kiss. Every single bit of attraction from every single fantasy she had had.

She whimpered as Santana deepened the kiss before pausing and pulling away.

Santana's chest rose and fell quickly as she stared at Rachel.

"I probably shouldn't have done that." Rachel whispered before quickly pushing passed Santana to exit the apartment.

It felt as though the space was closing in on her and she had to get out before things got worse or she did something she'd regret..more so than she already did.

_"Rachel, wait!"_

Rachel ignored her as she ran into her apartment and locked the door, leaning on it as she slid down, her eyes wide as the kiss played over and over again in her mind.

_Fuck._

* * *

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	4. Chapter 4

Rachel paced around her living room nervously, she was already fifteen minutes late for her dinner at Kurt's but she absolutely couldn't leave her apartment with Santana and Max running wildly through the hall.

She had heard the woman come home and the excited squeals the boy let out as she chased him up and down the hall. She was sure the neighbors were getting annoyed, and if this was before she would have been too. But she had really grown to like the duo and their noise was just something she wished she could join in on.

Except she couldn't because she had really dug herself in a deep, deep hole that she was unsure she'd ever be able to get out from.

She had distanced herself from the small family..distanced being used lightly, in reality she had completely cut herself out of their lives, going as far as pretending she wasn't home and sneaking out of her apartment when she had somewhere to be for the last two weeks.

It was immature and crazy, but those two things were just characteristics she had tried to bury deep down as she got older.

She had felt awful every time Santana had come to the door, and she had felt even worse when it was Max knocking. It wasn't fair to him, he hadn't done anything and it wasn't him she was trying to avoid. He was just caught in the middle, something she wished she hadn't caused.

Santana hadn't done anything either, so it was stupid to be avoiding her but she couldn't face the woman.

Not after she completely embarrassed herself and ruined whatever friendship they were building.

She was doing everything in her power to avoid both Lopezes at all costs, even going as far as looking for a new place to live and signing a contract for a show she wasn't even sure would amount to anything.

Her life had become a tangled mess and she was the only one to blame for it.

* * *

She cautiously opened her door as the noise stopped, luckily for her neither Lopez were in sight and she could slip out unnoticed.

She locked her door as quietly as she could and made her way to the elevator, looking over her shoulder nervously with every second that went by.

"Rachel!" Max screamed in delight as the elevator doors opened, "I missed you! Mom made me hang out with the weird old lady downstairs."

Rachel cringed at the little boy's innocent face, she couldn't do this right now. He didn't deserve any of what she was doing. "I'm sorry, Maxwell, I've been so busy. I actually—"

"Max, come on, leave Ms. Berry alone." Santana called out coldly as she leaned against her door, her eyes never meeting Rachel's.

"But, mom—"

Santana cut him off with a stern look, "_Now_, Max."

Rachel frowned as the boy dejectedly walked down the hall, she felt like the worst person in the world. She never meant to put him in the middle, the last thing she ever wanted was to hurt him. She knew if the situation was reversed she'd hate Santana for hurting her child so she imagined Santana wasn't her biggest fan at the moment.

Rachel stared at her reflection in the elevator doors as she rode down to the lobby, hating the woman she had become since Santana moved in.

* * *

"All I'm saying is that you've been hiding and sneaking around for two weeks, Rachel! It's unhealthy."

Rachel rubbed her temples, "It's not that easy, Kurt! I really messed things up, she's never going to talk to me again because of what I did to Max."

"Look, you can't keep living like this. You're either hiding out in your apartment pretending not to be home or you're out dreading going home." Kurt frowned.

"You're supposed to help me, not tell me things I already know." She whined.

"Why don't you stay here for a few days, Rach? You have things here and if you need anything else Kurt and I will get them for you." Blaine suggested, ignoring the glare his husband was shooting him.

"Oh, I couldn't do that to you guys. I just have to suck it up and face her." Rachel said.

"That's a great idea!" Kurt said quickly.

Blaine rolled his eyes, "No it's not, you are free to stay as long as you like."

"Thanks, you guys are the best." Rachel said as she pulled them both into a bone crushing hug.

She knew she'd have to go back home eventually to talk to Santana, but she was okay with putting it off a little longer.

"Do I get to pick the movie tonight?!"

Kurt sighed and scowled at Blaine as he sat down next to Rachel, she was definitely his best friend but he could only handle her in small doses. They had lived together before and it was completely awful, he vowed to never do it again–even if it was for a short period.

He had to get her back to her own apartment and he had to do it quickly. He could already see Blaine getting too comfortable with her around, he really didn't want to give up his fashion room so she could move back in with them.

He knew his best friend was no where near ready to face Santana so he was going to help her out, it was about time he met the non-stripper to see if she was even worth all the fuss.

For Rachel's sake of course.

* * *

Kurt tapped his foot impatiently as he waited for someone to open the door, he hadn't told his husband where he was going and if he wasn't home soon he knew he'd get in trouble for meddling.

"Oh, hello! Is your mom home?" Kurt asked with a smile as the door creaked open to reveal a tiny occupant.

"Who are you?"

"I'm a friend of Rachel's—"

"Mom told me not to believe people that say that 'cuz they're liars." Max said with a scowl.

Kurt huffed, "I am not lying, she is my best friend. I even have a key to her apartment..I don't know why I'm arguing with you, is your mom home or not?"

"Who's at the door, kid?" Santana asked from somewhere inside the apartment.

"I dunno, a fancy man looking for Rachel." Max called back with a shrug.

"I'm not looking–_ugh_, I need to talk to Santana Lopez..please." Kurt called out desperately.

"What can I do for you, fancy smurf?" Santana said as made her way to the door, her eyebrows raised in question.

Kurt's eyes widened as the woman came into view, she was nothing like he had expected. "Uh, I just wanted to talk to you about Rachel."

"You have some nerve coming here, who are you with?" Santana asked, her glare hard.

"I'm sorry? I'm not with anyone I just—"

"What, you just wanted information no other magazine has?" Santana asked as she reached into the locked cabinet beside her, "You can tell Vogue to bail you out of jail, you're disgusting." She said as she gripped his upper arm tightly and spun him against the wall, handcuffs around his wrists.

"No, please stop! I'm not with–_how did you know I work for Vogue?_" Kurt asked in surprise. "It doesn't matter, please un-cuff me, you have it all wrong. Rachel is my best friend, I came here to talk to you about what happened between you two because I can't have her in my house anymore, I love her but I'll kill her."

Santana narrowed her eyes as she kept him handcuffed and pinned against the wall, "Why should I believe you?"

"If you unlock my phone there's tons of pictures of us together, text messages and phone calls." Kurt cried.

"You could be a super fan." Santana said, still not believing a word.

"Santana, please I'm begging you."

Santana rolled her eyes as she un-cuffed him, "Sorry, I just like to be careful."

Kurt rubbed his wrists as he glared at her, "So you handcuff people?"

"It's a thing I do, you never know." Santana shrugged. "What makes you think I want to talk to you, someone I don't even know, about Rachel, someone I _wish_ I didn't know?"

Kurt frowned, "Look, Rachel isn't the best at..well relationships really, let alone one where a child is involved. You have to understand that two months ago she wouldn't have bailed on lunch with me because she was watching a kid..she doesn't do kids but somehow she loves yours."

"If she cared about Max at all she wouldn't be such a damn coward." Santana said, her arms crossed tightly over her chest.

"She's being a coward because she feels bad about putting him in the middle of it all, she's never done anything like this. She hasn't dated anyone in over a year because she's career driven and yet every time I talk to her lately it's always _Santana this_ or _Max that_.." Kurt trailed off, hoping Santana understood that Rachel needed a little push in the right direction.

"I don't have time for her games, _she_ kissed _me_ and then ran away. If she wants to finally talk to me she knows where I am." Santana frowned. "Thanks for trying but Rachel is an adult, this isn't high school."

"Okay well..she'll be coming home tonight so if you change your mind.." Kurt paused, "She's actually really great, I'm not just saying that because she's my best friend but because she actually is. She may be acting like a coward, but she's also beating herself up over it. Just..give her a chance."

Kurt frowned as the woman stayed with the same expression, "Okay, have a good afternoon, Santana."

"See ya, fancy smurf."

Kurt sighed as he made his way toward the elevator, what a waste of a trip across the city.

Rachel had really messed things up this time and there was nothing he could do to fix it, he wasn't even sure there was anything she could do to fix it at this point.

* * *

Rachel entered her dark apartment with a sigh, she really had missed it but being back gave her bad anxiety with the thought of Santana so close by.

"About time you got home."

Rachel jumped in surprise, "How did you get in here? You're lucky I don't call the—"

Santana raised an amused eyebrow, "Call who?"

"You shouldn't be abusing your rank you know." Rachel said immaturely.

"You shouldn't kiss people and run away." Santana shot back.

"Well..you shouldn't break into people's homes!"

"I didn't break in, I asked the super to let me in for police business." Santana shrugged.

"You did _what_? He probably thinks I'm a criminal now!" Rachel cried.

"You thought I was a criminal for like a week."

"Well you seemed like a criminal."

"You know this is the most we've talked in like two weeks." Santana said with a tiny frown.

Rachel frowned, "You didn't really give me a choice, you broke into my home."

"I figured it was the only way I could get you to speak to me..and I was right." Santana shrugged. "Why did you kiss me and run? I mean if you're going to kiss someone don't run right after."

"I'm sorry..I don't do things like this usually." Rachel said.

"The running or the kissing?" Santana asked in amusement.

"Both I guess." Rachel sighed, running a hand through her hair nervously. "If I'm being honest I think I've felt some sort of physical attraction to you since you moved in, and then I had dirty fantasies and then we spent the day together and you were different than I thought you'd be and it all became too much."

"I don't see why you would make a move if you weren't going to follow through." Santana said. "And to put my son in the middle of it all? I don't appreciate that. Do you know how many times he asked me why you weren't around? At least twice a day. It's fine if you don't want to talk to me, but to do that to Max? I don't—"

"Santana, I know okay? I feel awful that I hurt him, I can't even imagine how upset you must be. I wouldn't want someone doing that to my child if I had one. I just..." Rachel paused with a frown, "Meeting you made me question myself."

"What do you mean?" Santana frowned.

"Do you know how many times I've babysat in my life? Zero times, I just don't do kids. I grew up with two dads and I've never felt very maternal, I never even wanted a pet before." Rachel tried to explain. "And then I came home one day and there was this little boy at my door trying to get his rat and he got my heart along with it despite how annoyed I may have seemed."

"And then you came into the picture and it changed everything. I never date because I don't want to change my life for someone else, especially someone with a kid." She paused, avoiding Santana's gaze. "But with you it's different. It's like I just want to be part of your life, I want to be apart of the jokes and the games and all that family stuff I've never been interested in. I want to go on dates with you and see where it goes, and if it goes in a serious direction? That doesn't even scare me."

"But you don't do the whole domestic family thing." Santana said in confusion.

"But I _would_ like to do it with you." Rachel defended.

"You have to fix things with Max first, I'm not doing this if he's unhappy with it." Santana said, a tiny frown on her face.

"I'll talk to him first thing tomorrow morning!" Rachel said quickly. "You really want to try this out?"

"I've had a tiny crush on you since that first day, your diva meltdown was sorta cute despite being rude to my friends." Santana shrugged.

Rachel grinned, "Really?"

Santana rolled her eyes, "Don't let it get to your head, tiny. If we're going on a date tomorrow I'm going to have to sleep, so I'm going to get out of here. See you in the morning, Rach."

Rachel bit her lip as the woman made her way to the door, "Santana?"

Santana paused at the door, "What's up, tiny?"

Rachel walked up to her slowly, her hands shaking, "I just um—"

Santana rolled her eyes and gently pressed their lips together, her hand cupping the side of Rachel's face as their lips moved in sync.

Rachel sighed happily into the kiss before slowly pulling back, "That was nice. You're good at that."

Santana laughed lightly, "Go to bed, tiny. You're delirious."

"See you in the morning, San." Rachel whispered as Santana made her way into her apartment.

Rachel grinned as she closed her door, she was glad Santana had broken into her apartment and they had talked.

She was also glad she was able to talk about her feelings truthfully without freaking out.

She couldn't wait to see where things went, there was just something about Santana Lopez that got her heart racing.

* * *

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	5. Chapter 5

Santana tapped her foot nervously, Rachel had promised she'd come over in the morning to fix things with Max and it was nearing early afternoon with no sign of her.

She honestly should have known, the woman wasn't one for confrontation unless it was forced and she didn't seem like the most logical thinking person either.

In fact she seemed downright insane and a little irrational.

But those qualities were kind of endearing when they weren't directly affecting her son.

She grumbled as she made her way to the door, if Rachel wanted to be a coward then fine, but she wanted to hear it herself now instead of going another two weeks without any word from her.

Santana jumped in surprise as she opened her door and came face to face with a frazzled Rachel.

"I am _so_ sorry, I forgot I had business meetings this morning, I was going to knock and let you know but it was five in the morning and so I was going to text you but I realized I don't even have your number." She rambled quickly, a sincere look of regret in her eyes.

All of the anger Santana had been feeling immediately vanished at the woman's sorrowful expression, "You look insane right now, tiny."

"You have no idea, I'm exhausted. I've been all over the city, from the theater to an office and then back to the theater and to my agent's office." Rachel sighed tiredly. "I didn't forget about my promise though, I've felt so awful all day because I felt like I let you down."

Santana rubbed the woman's arm, "You're here now, go make it right."

"Thanks, San. I was going to leave a post-it but I couldn't find any in my rush this morning which is weird cause I always have them laying around." Rachel frowned.

Santana laughed, "I think Max had something to do with it, he has a bunch of pink sticky notes all over his room."

"That boy, he should know better." Rachel giggled, "Where is he? I'd like to speak with him."

"He's playing video games in his room with Puck," Santana said. "Also, give me your phone so I can put my number in it."

"Oh, you have company? I can come back later.." Rachel trailed off as she handed her phone over, not wanting to impose on Santana's day.

Santana rolled her eyes, "Max, you have a visitor!"

Santana watched Rachel curiously, she looked beyond scared and it was kind of adorable. She had never seen someone look so terrified of an apology.

"Mooom, I'm beating Puck!"

Santana rolled her eyes at the boy's attitude as she quickly typed her number into Rachel's phone, "You can beat Puck later, do you really wanna keep Rachel waiting?"

She grinned as she heard the gasp and thud followed by socked feet scampering down the hall. She had made it a rule to never be with someone her son didn't approve of, and his excitement over Rachel was all the approval she needed. It relaxed her to know that she finally had someone in her life she didn't have to let go because of Max. Not many women wanted to date a woman with a son, and those who stuck around didn't care much for him.

"Rachel! You never come over here, are we hanging out today? I have to tell Puck I can't play anymore." He said all in one breath, the excitement in his eyes growing.

Rachel smiled softly, "I actually came over to apologize to you. I've been a really..._crummy_ friend to you lately and I feel really bad about it."

Max shrugged, "You were busy, mom said you're like The Lion King musical but different."

Rachel tilted her head, "I mean, I'm nothing like–" She paused at Santana's head shake, "Anyways, I haven't been that busy, I just, um, your mom and I had a little spat so I've been avoiding her."

Santana raised an eyebrow, "A spat? Really?"

"What? I didn't know how to say it!" Rachel said.

Santana rolled her eyes, "Hey, kid, you know how I used to date Brittany?" She paused, waiting for Max's nod, "Well Rachel told me she liked me, and then didn't talk to me for a while because she was scared. Kinda like you and Amy, right?"

"We don't talk about Amy, mom." Max glared, "If you like my mom, why'd you ignore her, Rachel?"

Rachel frowned, "I guess I was scared, you know I'm not very good at watching you and it's because I've never really taken care of a child before so liking your mom who has you kind of scared me a little bit."

"But why couldn't we hang out?" Max asked.

"I was just being silly, Maxwell, and I'm really sorry if I hurt your feelings but I'd really like to make it up to you somehow." Rachel offered, hopefully.

Santana covered her face, she already knew exactly how this would play out. There was only one thing she knew Max wanted, and she knew it was the one thing Rachel wouldn't agree to.

Max discreetly smirked at Rachel, a smirk that almost identically matched his mother's, before replacing it with a convincing pout, "Well you did make me kinda sad when we didn't hang out."

"I'll do whatever you want to make it up to you, I feel really bad about it and I'd like it if we could be friends again." Rachel said, biting her lip in anticipation.

Santana watched on with an amused expression, she'd stop her child eventually...after the priceless look on Rachel's face disappeared.

"Anything I want?" Max asked, mischief in his eye.

Rachel nodded, "Anything you can think of that'll make us friends again."

"I want you to hold Batman...and kiss his nose."

Rachel's eyes widened in horror, "W-what? No, Max, anything besides touching the vermin."

"It's the only way, Rachel." Max grinned.

Rachel frowned, "Are you sure there isn't anything else you want? I have money I can—"

"I want you to hold Batman."

Rachel studied the boy looking for the familiar glint he got in his eye whenever he was trying to pull a prank, not finding it she sighed, "Okay, I'll do it."

"I'll go get him! Make sure she doesn't leave, mom." He said as he ran back toward his room.

"You know you don't have to do this, I'll tell him to suck it up and accept your apology." Santana whispered.

Rachel straightened in her seat, "That's not going to do anything, I am teaching him a life lesson by doing this."

"And what is the life lesson he's learning, tiny?" Santana asked in amusement.

"That sometimes people make mistakes and hurt others accidentally, but you can always apologize and hope for the best." Rachel said, her eyes shut tightly as she took deep breaths.

Santana watched her closely, "And how does you holding a rat fit into this?"

"I'm showing him you can always make it up to someone if you hurt their feelings."

"By doing something you don't want to do? Shouldn't you be teaching him you shouldn't do stuff you don't want to just to make someone else feel better?" Santana asked.

Rachel pouted, "I didn't think of it that way, I'm really bad at all this parenting stuff I guess."

Before Santana could reply Max came out of his bedroom with a proud smirk, Batman nestled comfortably on his shoulder. "Ready, Rachel?"

Rachel nodded tensely, "Mhm, yeah, let's get this over with."

"Sometimes he likes to chew on hair, so be careful, he chomped a big piece of Dani's hair off." Max said as he walked closer.

Rachel cringed, "Hurry before I pass out."

Max placed the rodent on Rachel with a cheeky grin, ignoring her stiff posture and terrified look.

Santana watched on with an apologetic stare, wishing she hadn't listened to Rachel and stopped him. She knew the woman wanted to make things right but this definitely wasn't the way to do it, there was no reason for her to be doing something she was terrified of.

"Pet him." Max urged.

"I..don't think I can move." Rachel frowned, frozen in fear.

Max rolled his eyes and guided Rachel's hand to lay on top of the rat, "Now pet him! He likes behind his ears scratched."

Rachel grimaced as she slowly moved her hand down the rat's body, "Okay, there. I did it, get it off."

Max shook his head, "I said you had to kiss his nose."

"I–are you sure? I don't remember that part." Rachel lied as she shuddered in disgust at the thought of putting her lips anywhere near the rat.

"Come on, Rachel! Don't you wanna be friends?"

"If this is how you make friends then I bet you don't have any." Rachel grumbled, trying to figure out a way to get the rat close to her face without touching it again.

"You have to lift him." Max instructed.

"Oh I _really_ didn't want to do that." Rachel whined.

"Just grab him from underneath and then put your other hand on top of him, don't squeeze him though!"

Santana laughed at Rachel's wary stare, "Max, I think Rachel proved she's sorry."

Max sighed, "Just a little peck, I'll hold him if it makes it easier!"

"Okay, fine! Let's get this over with." Rachel groaned.

Max piled the rat up quickly and held him in front of Rachel's face, "Sometimes he likes to lick, so be careful."

Santana stared shocked as Rachel quickly gave the rat a quick kiss on the nose, "I can't believe you did that."

Rachel stood, her eyes still shut tightly, "I have to go disinfect my mouth and make sure I don't have rabies. I also have to sanitize my hands and burn these jeans."

Santana laughed as she guided Rachel to the door, sliding her phone into the back pocket of her jeans, "Do you need me to unlock your door, drama queen?

Rachel blushed as Santana's hand rested on her back, "I'll be okay, um thanks for letting me come over and apologize."

Santana shrugged, "No biggie, you don't have to leave you know. I'm pretty much free unless something happens."

"Well you have company and—"

"Puck isn't at my house, they're playing online. Though I do want you to meet my friends without yelling at them at some point." Santana teased.

Rachel blushed again, "I'm really sorry about that."

"I mean it was kinda funny, we laughed about it for like a week." Santana smirked.

Rachel playfully shoved her, "Don't be rude. I'm going to—"

"Stay." Santana said, biting her lip. "I mean, you don't have to I just—"

"I want to, I just really need to shower." Rachel admitted sheepishly.

"Are–because of Batman?" Santana asked in amusement.

"Yes, Santana, because of the disgusting little rodent." Rachel said in disgust. "You know, I really don't understand how you allow that thing in your home, they're so dirty and gross and carry diseases. Furth—"

Santana rolled her eyes and pushed the woman into the hall, "Go shower the crazy off yourself, I'll make us some lunch."

"I'm—"

"Vegan, I know. This isn't the first time we've ever talked, jeez. Cut me some slack, I remember things." Santana frowned.

Rachel smiled and shook her head, "I was going to say that I'd be really quick, but I'm glad you remember things."

"You totally did that on purpose." Santana said, eyes narrowed in accusation as Rachel walked into her own apartment.

"I guess you'll never know." She said before disappearing behind the closed door.

* * *

Santana sighed in content as she moved effortlessly around the kitchen, no one had made her feel like this in a really long time and the fact that it was her crazy, yet completely hot neighbor made it even better. She had never in a million years thought she'd live across the hall from Rachel Berry, the woman really was amazing in the shows she had done, she knew how to captivate an audience with just one look.

There was just something about Rachel that made her heart race yet still at the same time and it was weird because girls like Rachel had never been her type, she liked tall blondes, not short brunettes that were way too loud and probably insane. But she did have great legs, and a mesmerizing smile that had Santana entranced for hours.

Santana tried to think about the exact moment she realized her feelings for Rachel as she began making lunch.

It had to have been the way she had cared for Max without even knowing anything about him, letting him into her home and watching him without question that first time that made her realize Rachel was a decent person–even if she lectured her about it afterwards.

Every day that she had watched Max after that was just another day of Santana seeing Rachel as something other than uptight, she was seeing her as caring and gentle, even a little funny some days.

She really was adorable, there were so many little things she did that had Santana smiling like an idiot for most of the day. Like the baked goods she'd send home with Max or the food she'd have out for Santana to eat whenever she got home.

The more Santana thought about it, the more she realized the exact day her feelings had been made clear.

It was the day they went to the zoo, knowing Rachel was fully prepared to take him there herself had she not showed up. It was being there together, watching her goof around with Max and join in on their silly games they always played. No one had ever done that besides Puck and Dani, but Rachel had. She joined them in trying to making the monkeys angry and she joined in when they tried to catch a pigeon, she even played along when they pretended not to speak English.

That was the day Santana had realized maybe Rachel wasn't the uptight neighbor she had made herself out to be, she was compassionate and thankful toward everything Santana had done.

She knew Rachel had a crush on her before the kiss, the woman definitely wasn't the most discreet about it. The longing stares and slight blushes every time they were around each other were proof enough, not to mention the way Rachel had always stared at her as if she were picturing her naked–especially after finding out about Santana's stripper days.

The kiss had taken her by surprise, she hadn't expected Rachel to be so forward though the ignoring was exactly what she had expected after the woman had fled into her own apartment.

Santana had come to realize that Rachel was impulsive, never thinking things through fully before actually doing them. She had spent so many years studying people and she could tell that Rachel was the type to fall into the pressure of her own mind, her brain was her biggest enemy along with her overzealous imagination.

But despite all of those things she really was an amazing woman, the super hadn't been lying when he said she was the neighbor to befriend, she was a good person to have on your side. She cared about everyone, which was rare in this city of way too many people.

New York was a cold place, Santana had learned that the hard way when she had moved out all those years ago but somehow since knowing Rachel it had felt more like home than it ever had before.

She knew the actress was wary about having a family and Santana knew there was no way they'd ever buy a house in the outskirts together, but maybe if things worked out they could get a bigger apartment in the city, one with a view and two floors. She knew children weren't in Rachel's future, but that was okay because she had Max, she had raised him and went through the trials and tribulations of being a new mother, she didn't need to start all over again with another kid, especially because she knew the boy was only going to be even more of a handful than he already was as he got older.

The more Santana thought about it the more she realized that she and Rachel were actually really good for each other, they wanted the same things and both had established careers they were already proud of. There was no more work to be done, they had settled their lives separately and now was the time to start cohabiting–assuming Rachel was also against the idea of marriage.

She didn't want to get carried away, she barely knew Rachel and there could be things about her that just changed everything. But from what she did know it seemed almost as though the universe had finally done something right by leading them to each other.

Santana wasn't a firm believer in god, but something told her that someone up there was looking out for her.

* * *

Santana grinned behind her menu as she listened to Rachel argue with Max over french fries not being a vegetable and how they weren't suitable for dinner.

Lunch had gone well and they had spent the day just hanging out in the apartment, Rachel insisting they go out for dinner together–Max included.

Santana wasn't exactly sure if it was a date, she had never been on a first date that she brought her kid to but it was going so well and she really did want to consider it a date she just wasn't sure where Rachel was at with all of this.

"But fries come from a potato, that's a vegetable."

"Maxwell, I swear you are so difficult. French fries are not a vegetable, they're a greasy food you definitely shouldn't eat...ever."

Santana rolled her eyes, "Are you seriously trying to tell me you've never had fries?"

"I can honestly say I've never had even one french fry in my whole life." Rachel said proudly.

Max stared at his mother in shock, his jaw dropped wide open.

Santana shook her head, "I don't believe it."

"You can call my fathers, I have never had one." Rachel said.

"I mean..how? Not even in your drunk college days?" Santana asked, horrified.

Rachel shrugged, "I never had drunk college days, I went to class, did my work, auditioned for shows, waitressed and kept a perfect GPA."

"What's a drunk college day, mom?" Max asked.

"Something you'll never do because I'll kick your butt if you do it, got it?" Santana asked, her eyebrow raised daring him to argue. "I can't believe this, you haven't lived, tiny."

"My best friend Kurt and I have gone to clubs, it's not like I've never been drunk!" Rachel said.

Max looked up from his coloring with a thoughtful expression, "Is Kurt the one that came over?"

Rachel frowned, "Kurt never came over."

"Max, you finish coloring that picture, kid." Santana said quickly, trying to distract him away from the conversation. The last thing she needed was Rachel storming out because Kurt had visited her.

Max ignored her as her shook his head, "He came over yesterday to talk to mom, he looked like he was going to a special dinner."

Rachel turned her attention to Santana, "Kurt came to see you?"

Santana sighed, "Don't be mad at him, he really cares about you and he was just trying to help. Actually I'm surprised he didn't tell you himself, I kind of handcuffed him."

"You...handcuffed him? Why?" Rachel asked slowly.

"I thought he was with a gossip magazine or something, I don't know." Santana frowned.

"How did you think he got into the building, let alone to our floor? You need a key for both those things." Rachel said in amusement.

"I wasn't thinking about it, I just..he–_shut up._" Santana mumbled.

Rachel giggled and nudged Santana's foot, "You're cute, I wish all my dates were as cute as you."

"Dates huh?" Santana asked, doing her best to conceal the hopefulness in her voice.

"Mhm, if you want it to be." Rachel said, biting her lip nervously.

Santana grinned, "I definitely want this to be a date."

Rachel leaned back in her seat, "Good cause I was going to consider this a date whether you agreed or not."

"Oh yeah?" Santana asked, "Tell me, Rachel Berry, do you kiss on the first date?"

"Guess you'll have to find out." Rachel smirked.

"Ew, you guys are gross." Max whined.

Santana laughed and ruffled the boy's hair, "Haircut soon, kid. You're starting to look homeless."

Max backed away from her quickly, "Aw, mom! I like it like this."

"I'm sure a trim wouldn't hurt, maybe even in a way you could style it and make it look neat." Rachel offered.

Max shook his head, "No, I like it _this_ way."

"You're impossible, kid." Santana sighed.

"I'm _your_ impossible kid." Max grinned.

"I know and I regret rescuing you from the dog pound every day." Santana teased, winking at Rachel in the process.

"I knew he resembled a puppy more than a child." Rachel played along.

Santana watched on in amusement as Max and Rachel playfully fought with each other, she had never seen her son so incredibly happy as he was with Rachel. He was so carefree and captivated with her, much like Santana was as well.

She watched Rachel tickle Max with a soft expression, for someone that hated kids all of two months ago she sure seemed completely comfortable with them now.

She knew Rachel cared about Max, it showed every time she looked at him with that adorable, caring gaze.

Or how she held his hand tighter than necessary when they walked down the street, always making sure to keep him on the side furthest from the road.

Or the fact that she cared about the things he ate and drank, even going as far as taking the knife out of his napkin despite him learning to use one at the age of five.

She was protective, maybe even almost as protective as Santana, and that was something the cop really liked about her.

She caught Rachel's eye across the table and gave her a warm smile, maybe right now was too soon to tell, but she could see herself really loving Rachel Berry one day.

* * *

"I had a really good time tonight, Santana. I know it wasn't a conventional date cause your son was there but it was important to me to include him." Rachel said quietly, leaning up against the wall beside her door.

"I had a good time too, I'm glad you wanted to include Max, it really showed me that you're serious about being apart of my life–_all_ aspects of my life." Santana said, watching Max disappear into their apartment.

"I am, and I'd really like to do this again sometime..just us." Rachel said with a hopeful smile.

Santana grinned, "Definitely I just, hm." She paused, "Hopefully I don't mess this up."

Rachel shook her head and squeezed Santana's hand, "You couldn't if you tried, I think we both know if anyone is going to mess up, it'll be me."

Santana squeezed back gently, "How about neither of us mess this up and we just keep it together? I feel something for you, tiny and I can see whatever I'm feeling for you turn into something else in the future if we let it."

Rachel smiled and nodded, "Me too."

Santana softly pecked the actress's lips, "Goodnight, Rachel."

Rachel grinned and connected their lips again, "Goodnight, Commissioner Lopez."

Santana watched as Rachel disappeared into her apartment, she definitely wouldn't mind seeing where things with Rachel went, the woman was addicting in every sense.

She just hoped things lasted and lead to greater, more intimate things. She wanted to know everything about Rachel, all of her likes and dislikes, the things that made her who she was. She'd spend the rest of her life trying to figure it out if she was able to.

Hopefully neither one of them messed it up.

* * *

**Review!**


	6. Chapter 6

******Author's Note: So t****his doesn't take place directly after the last chapter and I've decided that none of them are really going to follow a chronological order unless necessary. It'll be more of a look at different times and situations etc so if you have any ideas about things that should happen please feel free to let me know!**

* * *

"So we're just going to run through blocking today and maybe the third act if we have time, sound good?"

Rachel smiled excitedly, "That sounds perfect, I'm so glad we're finally rehearsing. It feels like the show has been all talk for so long!"

The producer of the show scowled, "Just cause we're friends doesn't mean I won't kick you out for disrespecting me."

Rachel froze, "I'm so sorry, I was just teasing. I didn't mean—"

The man laughed, "Calm down, Rae, I was kidding! Okay let's get this started."

Rachel sighed in relief as she began flipping through her script to take notes about everything that was important; people had always made fun of her dorky behavior but it always played out well for her in the end–her performance always out shining everyone else's.

She also felt it was necessary to put more than her regular hundred and ten percent in because of how long it had been since she'd been in a show; she may have kept up with her dance and vocal lessons but being in a show was hard work—especially when she had just gotten used to being a sort of _stay-at-home-not really a mom-mom._

Of course Max had started school again four months ago so their days together had really only consisted of taking him to school and picking him up if Santana wasn't able to and watching him afterwards if it was necessary. She was kind of bummed that their time together was extremely cut back, but with him in school and Santana home sometimes during the day was really amazing; they had been dating for five and a half months and while Rachel was still wary over the seriousness of their relationship, she really found herself falling for the Latina more and more every day.

She hadn't really ever been in such a domestic relationship before and she usually found herself freaking out over the smallest of things, thankfully Santana always noticed and brought her back before it turned into something bigger.

Santana was good at reading her, almost _too_ good, and it was scary not having any sense of mental privacy because the cop always seemed to be two steps ahead of her mind. Rachel honestly wasn't sure if it was _because_ the woman was a cop and was trained to read people or if Santana just really knew her that well. It was a blessing and a curse all at once, she couldn't keep things from her girlfriend but it also meant Santana knew exactly how to help without her saying anything.

Santana knew exactly when she was doubting herself or their relationship and always had the best ways to reassure her everything was fine–being domestic wasn't scary. Rachel knew the relationship was challenging for Santana, she always had to be the strong one because even a little slip would send Rachel into panic mode about their relationship.

She really had no reason to doubt it or be afraid by it, she knew Santana loved her; the woman had let it slip one night while they were in bed having thought Rachel was asleep already. She hadn't told Santana she knew, but she had a feeling the cop knew. She was just glad Santana wasn't pushing her to say it back.

"Miss. Berry? I'm so sorry to interrupt the rehearsal but there's a phone call for you."

Rachel frowned, "Is it important? Everyone knows not to call me right now."

The wide-eyed intern nodded quickly, "It's from your son's school, they sounded very urgent."

"I don't have a—" Rachel rushed over to her phone quickly, "Hello? This is Rachel Berry."

_"Hi, Miss. Berry, I'm so sorry to have to bother you at work but I tried Miss. Lopez and the department informed me she's got her hands full right now."_ The secretary said with a very apologetic tone to her voice. _"Miss. Lopez recently changed the secondary emergency contact to you which is why you're receiving this call."_

Rachel sighed, leave it to Santana to do another important thing without telling her about it first. "Why does Santana always make these decisions without letting me know."

_"I'm sorry, Miss. Berry."_

Rachel blushed, "Sorry, I was talking more to myself. Um, are you calling to confirm my position?"

The secretary laughed softly, _"You've never done this, have you?"_

Rachel felt her face become hotter, "No, ma'am."

_"I'm calling because I have Max with me in the office, he slipped on some ice pretty bad out on the playground and he's not doing so well."_

"Oh my god, I'll be right there!" Rachel said quickly, "Heath! I have to leave my...my Max is hurt!"

The producer rubbed his face in annoyance, "Rachel, we really have to finish the blocking! I thought you said you would never be interrupted during rehearsals."

"I know what I said, and I'm sorry but I really have to go! My girlfriend will kill me if I pick staying here over checking on our kid!" Rachel said angrily as she stormed into her dressing room to collect her things, never once realizing her mistake.

* * *

She practically ran out of the cab the second it came to a stop, she had to make sure Max was okay and unharmed. Santana trusted her to do this and she wasn't going to let her girlfriend down.

Her heart broke as the messy haired child came into view, he was slumped in one of the office chairs with an ice pack on his head and a scowl on his face.

She knelt down next to him as she entered the office, "Hey, sweetie. How're you doing?"

"I'm fine, I don't know why I can't go back to class." He grumbled, angry he was missing experiment day for their science lesson.

"I heard you hit your head pretty hard." Rachel frowned, "Can I check it out?"

Max shrugged, the scowl still sitting on his face.

Rachel rolled her eyes, "You're just as stubborn as your mom."

She gently rubbed the boy's head, frowning when she felt the size of the bump and how warm he was. She moved her hands down from the top of his head to his cheeks and forehead, his entire face was burning up.

"Stay here, okay? I'm going to talk to the secretary so I can sign you out."

"Aw, Rachel! Can I please stay?" Max whined.

Rachel ignored him as she stood in front of the secretary's desk, "Um, I'm not really sure of the—"

The secretary smiled, "Just sign here and I'll have a classmate bring his things down to the office and you can be on your way."

Rachel nodded, "Okay, thank you. He has a really big bump on his head and he feels kind of warm, do I—"

"Maybe run him by his pediatrician if you can. If not just take him home and keep an eye on him for drowsiness and if his temperature gets high."

"Thank you so much, you have a muffin basket coming your way for being so helpful!" Rachel said.

The secretary chuckled, "Honey, it's fine. You looked like you needed the help. Now don't tell Miss. Lopez but I'd rather you come in from now on, you're much nicer."

"Well Santana is quite demanding sometimes so I completely understand." Rachel grinned as she signed the check-out list.

"Ready to go, Maxwell?" She asked, noticing his things were sat beside him.

"I guess so." He mumbled, still unhappy that he had to go home.

"I'm going to try calling your mom on the way to the doctor's, I know they said she was busy but maybe she can meat us there, sound good?" Rachel asked as she lead him outside.

He shrugged again, "Don't care."

Rachel frowned, "Are you being grumpy because you don't feel well or because you're upset with me for taking you out of school?"

"Both."

"Well, I can't help either of those things so don't give me an attitude. You know your mom doesn't approve of it and I would get in trouble with her if I let you do it." Rachel lectured lightly as the climbed into a taxi.

"Sorry, Rachel." He mumbled, leaning against her as the car drove off to his doctor's office.

* * *

Rachel bounced her knee anxiously as she sat in the waiting room, the boy's fever hadn't settled and the bump on his head seemed to be growing by the minute. Thankfully his pediatrician had been available to see him but not for another hour or so.

Rachel sighed and dialed the police station in hopes of getting a hold of Santana or someone who could tell the woman what was going on.

_"NYPD, how may I help you?"_

"Hi, this is Rachel Berry, um, is San–Commissioner Lopez available?" Rachel asked.

_"What is this regarding?"_

"Oh, I'm not–I'm not reporting a crime. I just need to let her know I'm at the doctor's with her son." Rachel explained nervously.

_"I'll dispatch her right away to let her know but she's got her hands quite full with a suspicious package over on fifty-second."_

Rachel sighed, "It's just going to distract her, tell her after the situation has been dealt with and make sure to let her know he's okay and not telling her was my idea."

_"But—"_

"If she gets mad I'll take care of it, thank you." Rachel said as she hung up the phone, a worried frown on her face.

She had never had to deal with a sick Max directly, Santana was always the one taking care of him when he was sick and she was the one that took him to all of his appointments. This was a huge step for Rachel and she just wished she could talk to Santana to calm her down.

"Maxwell Lopez? The doctor's ready."

Rachel held in a nervous breath as she led the boy to the room, praying he was okay and Santana wouldn't think she was a failure.

* * *

"Rach? Max? Anyone here?" Santana called out warily as she stepped into her girlfriend's dark apartment, usually she would come home to find them hanging out at Rachel's instead of her apartment.

Santana frowned as she looked around, it honestly looked as though Rachel hadn't even come home yet from rehearsal.

"Hey, Dani, did you happen to pick up Max from school today? I just got home and I think Rach is still at rehearsal so..."

_"Um, no...was I supposed to? I've been in the studio all day, maybe Puck picked him up." _

Santana fumbled to lock Rachel's door as she left, her anxiety off the charts about her son's location. "Yeah, okay I'll call him. Bye."

Things had been so good between them lately and Rachel was really learning how to be a parent, Santana just hoped she didn't forget about Max today.

_"Go for Puckerman."_

"Hey, Puck, did Rachel happen to call you to pick up Max today? They weren't in her apartment and her coat wasn't in there so she hasn't come home yet..." Santana trailed off worriedly as she unlocked her own door.

_"Uh nope, haven't talked to the munchkin since last week when she asked me to pick up the other munchkin." _

Santana pushed open the door with sweaty hands, "Fuck, Rachel, you were doing so well."

"With what?"

Santana jumped in surprise at her girlfriend's voice, "Nevermind, Puck, I found them, bye."

"What are you doing in here? I was about to have a heart attack when I saw how dark your apartment was, it literally looked like you haven't been in there since this morning."

Rachel frowned, "I haven't, I came straight here after the doctor's."

"The doctor's? Why did you go to the doctor's? I thought you had rehearsal all day." Santana asked in confusion. "Where's Max?"

"Santana, did you not listen to my voicemails? Did no one from the station tell you?"

Santana froze, "What happened?"

Rachel pulled her into the living room so they could sit on the couch, "He's okay, he just slipped on some ice at recess and hit his head pretty hard."

"I have—"

"I already took him to the doctor's, he actually laughed at me and told me I was showing symptoms for classic first time mother syndrome and offered me a Xanax which I didn't appreciate."

"No, he needs—"

"He had a slight fever but the doctor told me children's Tylenol was the best thing for him so I bought him all the flavors because I didn't know if he liked the bubble gum or grape or the cherry one, he picked bubble gum and quite frankly I don't blame him. It smelled the—"

Santana covered Rachel's mouth with her hand, "Stop talking for two seconds."

"Thank you for being there for him and for taking him to the doctor's though I do think you were a little dramatic about doing that." Santana teased lightly, "His favorite is the bubble gum and I actually had some here at home already but thank you for buying all the different kinds."

Rachel shrugged bashfully, "I was just trying to make you proud of your decision to put me as an emergency contact. Though it was a little surprising and you _do_ have a bad habit of not telling me things before doing them."

Santana laid her head on Rachel's shoulder, "I completely forgot, I did mean to tell you. Now, what I was trying to say before you kept interrupting me is that I have to go check on him. Head injuries aren't a joke."

Rachel held her down in place tightly, "The doctor told me it was good for him to sleep off the fever, there was no sign of concussion so him sleeping was okay."

"I know, I just want to check on him."

"He's sound asleep...and I was just in there before you came crashing in the door. I've um, I've been in there since we got home." Rachel admitted sheepishly.

"I knew you had maternal instincts, tiny." Santana whispered lovingly as she ran her fingers up and down Rachel's back. "How about we both go sit in there with him? I'm sure the chair in the corner fits both of us."

Rachel smiled and nodded, "I like that idea, there's nowhere I'd rather be."

Santana pulled Rachel along with her into the boy's bedroom, her heart warming at the sight of her son tucked comfortably into bed with the stuffed rat Rachel had gotten him a few weeks ago. The actress could swear she wasn't meant to be a mother until she was blue in the face but Santana knew differently, she knew Rachel could do it–she proved it constantly with how she treated Max.

Santana wrapped her arms around Rachel's waist and laid her head against the singer's chest, the woman's own head resting on top of Santana's, "You sat in here with him this whole time?"

"Yeah." Rachel whispered, her eyes focused on the rise and fall of Max's chest.

"You hate being in here cause of Batman." Santana said in realization.

Rachel shrugged, "Making sure he was okay was more important than my phobia."

Santana blinked in surprise and pulled the woman closer to her, this was definitely reason number two million why she was in love with Rachel Berry, she just wished she could tell her without it being a big deal.

She knew they'd get there one day and the wait was definitely worth it but she wished that day would come sooner.

* * *

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